Gas lighter of the suspended container type



March 1964 E. GILBERTON GAS LIGHTER OF THE SUSPENDED CONTAINER TYPEFiled Dec. 7, 1961 United States Patent 3,122,907 GAS LIGHTER 0F THESUSPENDED CONTAINER TYPE Emile Gilherton, Paris, France, assignor toEtablissements Genoud & Cie, Venissieux (Rhone), France, a company ofFrance Filed Dec. 7, 1961, Ser. No. 157,772 Claims priority, applicationFrance Dec. 23, 1960 Claims. (Cl. 67-71) This invention relates to gaslighters.

Gas lighters are lcnown wherein the container for the lighter fluid haits upper end suspended by the stem of its valve which is permanentlyfitted on said container. The lighter is activated by exerting adownwardly directed thrust on the container.

My invention relates to a particular manner for suspending the containerby the valve stem. More particularly, there is provided on the valvestem a projection which engages the upper surface of a control leverwhich is pivotally secured to the upper end of the container. Theopening of the valve is obtained by a pivotal movement of said lever,which is manually produced and which lifts the valve stem, since thecontainer cannot be shifted upwardly by reason of its being held fast byengagement of its upper edge at the lower surface of the upper sectionor cover of the container and remaining thus freely suspended from thecontrol lever.

My invention covers also an elastic system holding the cover in positionthe casing without preventing in a free suspension described hereinaboveof the container under the cover head.

In a preferred embodiment, said elastic system includes a blade springengaging elastically the inner surfaces of two opposite walls of thecasing.

There is thus obtained a very convenient lighter in which the containercan be replaced very speedily and easily. Said lighter is also of a verysimple manufacture.

The arrangement referred to is applicable to any type of gas lighter,and chiefly to those wherein the sparks for ignition are produced beforethe gas valve opens.

The invention will be readily understood from the following disclosure,reference being made to the accompanying drawing given by way of exampleof an embodiment of a type of lighter according to the invention. Insaid drawing:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view in section of the lighter mechanism,

FIG. 2 is a side view thereof,

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the valve stem in position for itssuspension to the control lever,

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the lighter, partly in section.

In the drawing, '1 designates the actual cover of the lighter while 2designates its container, and 3 its casing or sheath cooperating withthe cover.

In the case illustrated, the container 2 is cylindrical in shape and thepressure-reducing valve system 4 is crimped in the upper end of saidcontainer, along a frusto-conical fitting surface. The stem 5 of thevalve, the end of which forms a burner, is provided with a groove 6inside which is elastically engaged a clip 7 forming a projection onsaid stem.

The cover 1 of the lighter is provided at its upper end with aperforation 8 underneath which the burner terminating at the stem opens.A transverse spindle 9 rotatably supports a driving member 10 togetherwith a knurled wheel 11 which acts on the end of the flint 12. Saidflint 12 is housed inside the vertical flint-carrying tube 13 and it isurged upwardly by a conventional thrust-exerting spring 15. To the coverof the lighter, is also pivotally secured at 15 the actual controllever.

3,122,907. Patented Mar. 3, 1964 Said control lever includes a forkedsection 16 extending into a perforated section 17 through which mayfreely pass the flint-carrying tube 13, said perforated sectionextending in its turn into a projecting section 13 located outside thecasing 3. Said projecting section 13 extends into a further downwardlydirected section 19 which passes through the casing 3. The control levercarries also two upstanding studs 20 over which are fitted the lowerends of small springs 21 engaging through their other ends the undersideof the upper section of the cover 1 to either side of the perforation 8in the latter.

The position of the clip 7 over the valve stem 5 and that of the forkedsection 16 of the control lever are such that when the clip 7 isintroduced over the forked section 16, the container 12 abuts at itsupper edge against the lower surface of the cover 1.

The system 4 including the valve and pressure-reducing means is of aconventional type and includes a tube 25 dipping into the container 2and the upper end of which is crimped fluidtightly inside the upper endof the container while a washer 26 fitted inside the upper end of saidtube is centrally perforated to be engaged fluidtightly by the valvestem 5. Said stem 5 terminates at its lower end with a valve headincorporating a packing 27 and urged against its seat 28 formed by aperforated inner flange of the tube by a spring 29 fitted between thewasher at the upper end of the tube and a shoulder 30 at the lower endof the stem. Furthermore the axial bore 31 in the stem 5 opens intoradial bores 32 which allow the gases to enter and rise aside said axialbore. The tube rigid with the container extends downwardly beyond thevalve seat so as to enclose a further tube 33 along which the gases arethrottled.

It is thus apparent that by exerting a pressure on the section 18 of thelever in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1, the forked end 16 of thelever is caused to pivot in the opposite direction, and consequentlyexert a lifting force on the valve stem 5, against the action of thespring acting on the valve, so that the latter opens and allows thegases to pass out of the container 2 since the latter cannot follow therising movement of the stern by virtue that the container abuts againstthe cover 1 of the casing.

As already mentioned, the container 2 is thus freely suspended throughthe valve stem 5 to the control lever.

In the embodiment illustrated, the operators thumb actuates the lighterwith a view to producing a series of sparks by operating the drivingmembers 10 after which the operators thumb moves past said drivingmembers, and engages the section 18 of the control lever, so that thesparks are produced just before the release of the gases.

As soon as said section 18 of the control lever is released, the springs21 return the control lever to its prior inoperative position and thevalve closes again.

The flint-carrying tube 13 is fitted in the cover 1 and underneath ashoulder 22 formed on said tube, a blade spring constituting elasticmeans is fitted. The blade spring comprises arms 23 which are arcuateand are bent downwardly to either side of said flint tube 13, so thatthey exert a frictional force on the two opposite walls of the casing 3to elastically position the casing with reference to the cover 1 whileallowing the container 2 to remain freely suspended by its stem from thecontrol lever.

Obviously and as apparent from the preceding disclosure, the inventionis by no means limited to the sole embodiment described hereina'bove,which is shown solely by way of example, and the invention covers allmodifications falling within the scope of the accompanying claims.

What I claim is:

1. A gas lighter comprising a casing, a perforated cover for saidcasing, a container supported inside the casing and including a bodyhaving an upper edge which .contactsithe cover, a valve .on thecontainer, a hollow stem, rigid with the valve and adapted for beingshiftedvertically between an upper position for which the valve on thestem opens the container and a lower position for which said valvecloses the container, said stem having an open upper end and including aburner nozzle at said end, a projection rigid with the stem at alocation beneath said nozzle, a control lever pivotally secured to thecover and including a forked extension extending inwardly of the casingto support the projection on the stern, for raising the stem uponactuation of'the lever and igniting means including an actuating memberlocated adjacent said control lever for simultaneous operationtherewith.

2. A gas lighter as claimed in claim 1, comprising elastic means on thecover frictionally engaging the casing to secure the cover on thecasing.

3. A gas. lighter as claimed in claim 2, wherein said elastic meanscomprises a spring blade including a transverse section, connected tosaid cover and two depending outwardly deformed sections frictionallyengaging the casing.

4. A gas lighter as claimed in claim 1, wherein said stem is providedwith. an annular groove beneath said upper. end, said projection beingring shaped and supported in the annular groove in the stem.

5, A gas lighter as claimed in claim 1, comprising a projecting sectionrigidly connected to said control lever and projecting from said casing,said projecting section including a substantially horizontal surfaceadapted for being contacted to depress said section and raise saidforked extension and the stem therewith, said igniting means including aflint carrying tube supported by the cover and projecting within thecasing for supporting flint, a driving wheel rotatably supported by saidcover, a wheel adapted for being driven by said driving wheel and incontact with said flint, said driving Wheel having an outer surfaceimmediately adjacent the horizontal surface of the projecting section toallow substantially concurrent operation of said driving wheel and saidprojecting section.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,774,520 Laundry Dec. 18, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 70,486 France Dec. 8,1958 189,425 Austria Ivlar. 25, 1957 798,354 Great Britain July 16, 1958971,070 Germany Dec. 4, 1958 1,056,407 Germany Apr. 30, 1959 1,114,577France Dec. 19, 1955 1,243,630 France Sept. 5, 1960 Disclaimer3,122,907.--Emile Gilberton, Paris, France. GAS LIGHTER OF THE SUS- 64.Dis- PENDED CONTAINER TYPE. Patent dated Mar. 3, 19 claimer filed. May8, 1970, by the assignee, E tablissements Genoud 02 056. Hereby entersthis disclaimer to claims 1 and 5 of said. patent.

[Ofiicial Gazette August 18, 1970.]

1. A GAS LIGHTER COMPRISING A CASING, A PERFORATED COVER FOR SAIDCASING, A CONTAINER SUPPORTED INSIDE THE CASING AND INCLUDING A BODYHAVING AN UPPER EDGE WHICH CONTACTS THE COVER, A VALVE ON THE CONTAINER,A HOLLOW STEM RIGID WITH THE VALVE AND ADAPTED FOR BEING SHIFTEDVERTICALLY BETWEEN AN UPPER POSITION FOR WHICH THE VALVE ON THE STEMOPENS THE CONTAINER AND A LOWER POSITION FOR WHICH SAID VALVE CLOSES THECONTAINER, SAID STEM HAVING AN OPEN UPPER END AND INCLUDING A BURNERNOZZLE AT SAID END, A PROJECTION RIGID WITH THE STEM AT A LOCATIONBENEATH SAID NOZZLE, A CONTROL LEVER PIVOTALLY SECURED TO THE COVER ANDINCLUDING A FORKED EXTENSION EXTENDING INWARDLY OF THE CASING TO SUPPORTTHE PROJECTION ON THE STEM, FOR RAISING THE STEM UPON ACTUATION OF THELEVER AND IGNITING